Florida Senate - 2021                                     SB 706
       
       
        
       By Senator Taddeo
       
       
       
       
       
       40-00544-21                                            2021706__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to voter registration; amending s.
    3         97.057, F.S.; revising procedures governing voter
    4         registration by the Department of Highway Safety and
    5         Motor Vehicles; providing that driver license or
    6         identification card applications, driver license or
    7         identification card renewal applications, and
    8         applications for changes of address for existing
    9         driver licenses or identification cards submitted to
   10         the department serve as voter registration
   11         applications; specifying that an applicant is deemed
   12         to have consented to the use of his or her signature
   13         for voter registration purposes, unless a declination
   14         is made; requiring specified applications to include a
   15         voter registration component, subject to approval by
   16         the Department of State; specifying requirements for
   17         the voter registration component; providing for the
   18         transmittal of voter registration information to the
   19         Department of State and supervisors of elections;
   20         amending s. 98.045, F.S.; conforming a cross
   21         reference; providing an effective date.
   22          
   23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   24  
   25         Section 1. Section 97.057, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   26  read:
   27         97.057 Voter registration by the Department of Highway
   28  Safety and Motor Vehicles.—
   29         (1) Each of the following serves as an application The
   30  Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles shall provide
   31  the opportunity to register to vote or to update a voter
   32  registration record when submitted to the Department of Highway
   33  Safety and Motor Vehicles to each individual who comes to an
   34  office of that department to:
   35         (a) An application Apply for a driver license or a renewal
   36  of renew a driver license;
   37         (b) An application Apply for an identification card
   38  pursuant to chapter 322 or a renewal of renew an identification
   39  card pursuant to chapter 322; or
   40         (c) An application for a change of an address on an
   41  existing driver license or identification card.
   42  
   43  Unless the applicant declines to register to vote or to update
   44  his or her voter registration record, he or she is deemed to
   45  have consented to the use of the signature from his or her
   46  driver license or identification card application for voter
   47  registration purposes.
   48         (2) An application for a driver license or an
   49  identification card must include a voter registration component.
   50  The voter registration component must be approved by the
   51  Department of State. The voter registration component of a
   52  driver license or identification card application must contain:
   53         (a) The minimum amount of information necessary to prevent
   54  duplicate voter registrations and preserve the ability of the
   55  department and supervisors of elections to assess the
   56  eligibility of the applicant and administer voter registration
   57  and other provisions of this code.
   58         (b) A statement setting forth voting eligibility
   59  requirements.
   60         (c) An explanation that the applicant is consenting, for
   61  voter registration purposes, to the use of his or her signature
   62  from the applicant’s driver license or identification card
   63  application. By consenting to the use of his or her signature,
   64  the applicant is deemed to have subscribed to the oath required
   65  by s. 3, Art. VI of the State Constitution and s. 97.051 and to
   66  have sworn and affirmed that the voter registration information
   67  contained in the application is true under penalty for false
   68  swearing pursuant to s. 104.011.
   69         (d) An option that allows the applicant to choose or update
   70  a party affiliation; otherwise, an applicant who is initially
   71  registering to vote and does not exercise such option shall be
   72  registered without party affiliation in accordance with s.
   73  97.053(5)(b).
   74         (e) An option that allows the applicant to decline to
   75  register to vote or to decline to update his or her voter
   76  registration record. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
   77  Vehicles shall note any such declination in its records and
   78  forward the declination to the Department of State. Any
   79  declination may be used only for voter registration purposes and
   80  is confidential and exempt from public records requirements as
   81  provided in s. 97.0585.
   82         (3) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
   83  shall:
   84         (a) Develop a voter registration component for applications
   85  which meets the requirements set forth in subsection (2). Notify
   86  each individual, orally or in writing, that:
   87         1. Information gathered for the completion of a driver
   88  license or identification card application, renewal, or change
   89  of address can be automatically transferred to a voter
   90  registration application;
   91         2. If additional information and a signature are provided,
   92  the voter registration application will be completed and sent to
   93  the proper election authority;
   94         3. Information provided can also be used to update a voter
   95  registration record;
   96         4. All declinations will remain confidential and may be
   97  used only for voter registration purposes; and
   98         5. The particular driver license office in which the person
   99  applies to register to vote or updates a voter registration
  100  record will remain confidential and may be used only for voter
  101  registration purposes.
  102         (b) Require a driver license examiner to inquire orally or,
  103  if the applicant is hearing impaired, inquire in writing whether
  104  the applicant wishes to register to vote or update a voter
  105  registration record during the completion of a driver license or
  106  identification card application, renewal, or change of address.
  107         1. If the applicant chooses to register to vote or to
  108  update a voter registration record:
  109         a. All applicable information received by the Department of
  110  Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles in the course of filling out
  111  the forms necessary under subsection (1) must be transferred to
  112  a voter registration application.
  113         b. The additional necessary information must be obtained by
  114  the driver license examiner and must not duplicate any
  115  information already obtained while completing the forms required
  116  under subsection (1).
  117         c. A voter registration application with all of the
  118  applicant’s voter registration information required to establish
  119  the applicant’s eligibility pursuant to s. 97.041 must be
  120  presented to the applicant to review and verify the voter
  121  registration information received and provide an electronic
  122  signature affirming the accuracy of the information provided.
  123         2. If the applicant declines to register to vote, update
  124  the applicant’s voter registration record, or change the
  125  applicant’s address by either orally declining or by failing to
  126  sign the voter registration application, the Department of
  127  Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles must note such declination on
  128  its records and shall forward the declination to the statewide
  129  voter registration system.
  130         (3) For the purpose of this section, the Department of
  131  Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, with the approval of the
  132  Department of State, shall prescribe:
  133         (a) A voter registration application that is the same in
  134  content, format, and size as the uniform statewide voter
  135  registration application prescribed under s. 97.052; and
  136         (b) A form that will inform applicants under subsection (1)
  137  of the information contained in paragraph (2)(a).
  138         (4)The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  139  must Electronically transmit the voter registration component of
  140  an applicant’s driver license or identification card application
  141  to the Department of State completed voter registration
  142  applications within 24 hours after receipt to the statewide
  143  voter registration system. Upon receipt of the voter
  144  registration component, the Department of State shall provide
  145  the information to the supervisor of the county in which the
  146  applicant is registering Completed paper voter registration
  147  applications received by the Department of Highway Safety and
  148  Motor Vehicles shall be forwarded within 5 days after receipt to
  149  the supervisor of the county where the office that processed or
  150  received that application is located.
  151         (5) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  152  must send, with each driver license renewal extension
  153  application authorized pursuant to s. 322.18(8), a uniform
  154  statewide voter registration application, the voter registration
  155  application prescribed under paragraph (3)(a), or a voter
  156  registration application developed especially for the purposes
  157  of this subsection by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor
  158  Vehicles, with the approval of the Department of State, which
  159  must meet the requirements of s. 97.052.
  160         (4)(6) A person providing voter registration services for a
  161  driver license office may not:
  162         (a) Seek to influence an applicant’s political preference
  163  or party registration;
  164         (b) Display any political preference or party allegiance;
  165         (c) Make any statement to an applicant or take any action
  166  the purpose or effect of which is to discourage the applicant
  167  from registering to vote; or
  168         (d) Disclose any applicant’s voter registration information
  169  except as needed for the administration of voter registration.
  170         (5)(7) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  171  shall collect data determined necessary by the Department of
  172  State for program evaluation and reporting to the Election
  173  Assistance Commission pursuant to federal law.
  174         (6)(8) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  175  shall must ensure that all voter registration services provided
  176  by driver license offices are in compliance with the Voting
  177  Rights Act of 1965.
  178         (7)(9) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  179  shall retain complete records of voter registration information
  180  received, processed, and submitted to the Department of State
  181  statewide voter registration system by the Department of Highway
  182  Safety and Motor Vehicles. The maintenance of such These records
  183  is shall be for the explicit purpose of supporting audit and
  184  accounting controls established to ensure accurate and complete
  185  electronic transmission of records between the Department of
  186  State statewide voter registration system and the Department of
  187  Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
  188         (8)(10) The Department of State shall provide the
  189  Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles with an
  190  electronic database of street addresses valid for use as the
  191  address of legal residence as required in s. 97.053(5). The
  192  Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles shall compare
  193  the address provided by the applicant against the database of
  194  valid street addresses. If the address provided by the applicant
  195  does not match a valid street address in the database, the
  196  applicant will be asked to verify the address provided. The
  197  Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles may shall not
  198  reject any application for voter registration for which a valid
  199  match cannot be made.
  200         (9)(11) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  201  shall enter into an agreement with the Department of State to
  202  match information in the statewide voter registration system
  203  with information in the database of the Department of Highway
  204  Safety and Motor Vehicles to the extent required to verify the
  205  accuracy of the driver license number, Florida identification
  206  number, or last four digits of the social security number
  207  provided on applications for voter registration as required in
  208  s. 97.053.
  209         (10)(12) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
  210  Vehicles shall enter into an agreement with the Commissioner of
  211  Social Security as required by the Help America Vote Act of 2002
  212  to verify the last four digits of the social security number
  213  provided in applications for voter registration as required in
  214  s. 97.053.
  215         Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section
  216  98.045, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  217         98.045 Administration of voter registration.—
  218         (4) STATEWIDE ELECTRONIC DATABASE OF VALID RESIDENTIAL
  219  STREET ADDRESSES.—
  220         (b) The department shall make the statewide database of
  221  valid street addresses available to the Department of Highway
  222  Safety and Motor Vehicles as provided in s. 97.057(8) s.
  223  97.057(10). The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  224  shall use the database for purposes of validating the legal
  225  residential addresses provided in voter registration
  226  applications received by the Department of Highway Safety and
  227  Motor Vehicles.
  228         Section 3. This act shall take effect January 1, 2022.